The business community and investors are looking forward to a credible national election, said newly elected BGMEA President and Managing Director of Rising Group Mahmud Hasan Khan Babu in an interview.
Question: After the chief adviser, Dr Muhammad Yunus met with UK officials over the national election, many people in the country now feel they have a clearer idea about it. What is your opinion on this?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: The sooner a credible election takes place, the better it will be for the country and its people. Businesspeople and investors are waiting for that. The quicker it becomes effective, the more beneficial it will be for the economy.
Our expectation is that the process should not be hindered by any political tricks.
Question: Why do you fear such hindrance?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: Although it is not yet the right time to comment in detail about the election following the expected meetings, the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict has created fresh concern among businesspeople. It has raised fears of a major economic crisis ahead. This may lead to increased costs in imports, exports, and transportation.
Such a crisis would be difficult to manage without an elected government.
Question: The BGMEA election was recently held, and your panel won by a landslide. What’s the secret behind this success?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: BGMEA members wanted change. Our rival panel, Sammilita Parishad, had been in leadership for a long time. This time, the members expressed their trust in our Forum panel.
Moreover, past elections saw many unethical practices which the members did not take well. Through this free and fair election, they expressed their long-standing frustration.
Question: How do you plan to honour this overwhelming trust?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: Our top priority is to implement our election manifesto. When a team makes promises, it is their responsibility to fulfil them—maybe not all, but at least the majority.
Question: What are your top priority tasks?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: Our first task is to reduce the cost of doing business. For that, we’ve already started within our own house—BGMEA. We are cutting service charges by 25%. Even though this will reduce revenue, we’ll balance it by minimising waste. We’ll also work to support small and medium entrepreneurs who are falling behind.
Another urgent issue is the energy crisis. Since we’re reliant on LNG, we’ll press the government to expedite domestic gas extraction and adopt a long-term import strategy to avoid sudden shortages. We’re also pushing to bring gas from Bhola to the national grid quickly.
Besides, we aim to lower bank interest rates and automate or simplify the customs audit system to reduce harassment.
Question: But wouldn’t these steps contradict LDC-related policies? How do you plan to balance that?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: There are differing opinions among trade experts. During a recent WTO meeting in Dubai, developed countries gave assurance that they would not oppose such moves.
Question: You’ve laid out a broad outline of your plans. Which three issues will you prioritise most at this moment?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: Top priority goes to energy. Second is export tariffs in the US market. Third is low-cost refinancing from Bangladesh Bank.
Question: What plans are in place for workers?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: We plan to decentralise the process of addressing workers' legitimate demands so that they don’t need to approach BGMEA or take to the streets. Any problem should be resolved locally. Completing the unfinished hospital for workers in Mirpur will be our top priority.
Question: What challenges do you foresee in implementing these plans?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: Labour rights and human rights issues might pose challenges in securing tariff benefits in the US market. However, work has already begun on these matters. BGMEA will also work alongside the government to negotiate a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the US.
We’ll press the government strongly regarding local challenges too.
Question: What state do you want to leave BGMEA in by the end of your term in 2027?
Mahmud Hasan Khan: Even if we don’t attract fresh investment, I believe we can increase exports by another 10–15% using our existing capacity. In terms of volume and value, this could translate into a 30–35% growth.
To achieve this, we’ll work on reviving inactive factories.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
